Five candidates for three open seats on the Croton-Harmon Board of Education squared off at a League of Women Voters forum on May 12, fielding questions on educational technology, academic rigor, discrimination, and district accountability before a crowd at Croton-Harmon High School. The candidates — incumbents Sarah Carrier, Anamika Bhatnagar, and Neil Haber, and challengers Jake Day and Betsy Laird — answered eight questions selected from more than 100 submitted by the public. The forum was moderated by Laurie Schultz of the League of Women Voters of the River Towns and livestreamed on the district website. Student timekeepers Juliana Albenese and Nikki Mukherjee managed the clock. Voting takes place May 19 from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. at the high school gymnasium. The race features three incumbents seeking return and two newcomers. Carrier, a nine-year board veteran, emphasized the district's vision map and strategic planning process. Bhatnagar, completing her first term, stressed the need to evaluate programs against student outcomes and change a district culture she said is resistant to questions. Haber, a veteran incumbent who describes himself as a policy wonk, focused on long-term financial health. Day, whose son starts kindergarten at CET this fall, organized the campaign that saved the district's universal pre-K program last year. Laird, a clinical psychologist whose child will enter kindergarten and whose older child will enter second grade, centered her campaign on accountability, transparency, and foundational curriculum. Educational technology drew the sharpest exchanges of the evening. Day noted that the district's computer-assisted instruction budget has grown 45 percent over five years and that there are seven apps in use in kindergarten through second grade alone. He pointed out that middle schoolers are using AI tools like NotebookLM without an AI policy in place. Bhatnagar said most educational technology in use is not additive to student achievement and called for dialing back reliance on ed tech, particularly in kindergarten through second grade. She also raised concerns about data privacy, saying the district does not have adequate policies in place. Laird focused on resource allocation, suggesting that rather than spending $132,000 on iPads for second and fifth graders — an item on a recent board agenda — the district should redistribute existing devices and redirect the money toward additional instruction. Haber acknowledged the technology challenge, calling it a moving target, and said the board must ensure technology supplements rather than replaces analog instruction. Carrier said technology use must differ by grade level, with limited screen time for younger students focused on literacy and fine motor skills. Academic rigor and the vision map The vision map, the district's strategic planning framework, was a recurring theme. Day cited a 2024 Tri State Consortium report that found the vision map had "no names, timelines, or outcomes attached to it" and was "left with an intentionally undefined future." Haber pushed back, saying the Tri State report was issued while the plan was still in its formative stage and that metrics and timelines would follow once programs were established. Laird, whose professional work involves evaluating large-scale programs, said a strategy without defined success metrics at the formative stage is fundamentally incomplete. Bhatnagar said that centering the vision map without operational plans, evaluation frameworks, and measurable goals amounts to having a vision without substance. Laird and Day both called for stronger curriculum review. Laird said the district needs a stronger hand in approving curricula and pointed to Storyworks, the scholastic journal used for third and fourth grade literacy, as an example of a resource that arrives too late for teachers to prepare adequate lessons. Day called for a formal policy framework requiring evidence review, cost analysis, and success metrics before any curriculum or program change. Communication and accountability All five candidates said the district's communication with families needs improvement, though they differed on solutions. Day called for quarterly reports aggregating common themes from parent feedback and the district's responses. Day said responsiveness, not communication volume, is the core issue, recalling that it took months of parent advocacy to get an FAQ page about universal pre-K posted on the website. Bhatnagar said the district's culture needs to change so that parent questions are treated as good-faith engagement rather than criticism. Laird, who oversees a client responsiveness team at her organization, recommended implementing response-time metrics for the superintendent and building leaders. She also noted that some parents report receiving too much communication volume with too little substance. On superintendent accountability, Day said the board should use quantitative rather than qualitative metrics in annual evaluations. Day noted that recent evaluations used vague language like "reimagining schools" rather than specific, measurable goals. Laird said the district has not published an annual report since the 2020-21 school year and called for its revival. Bhatnagar said the board has improved by setting goals collaboratively with the superintendent rather than having goals presented for approval, but said follow-through must remain with the administration rather than falling to individual trustees. Discrimination and student safety On discrimination, Laird said the district does not have a formal DEI policy in place and that draft policies that have not been implemented protect no one. Haber said the district does the work even without a policy bearing that name, pointing to participation in Take Back the Night and climate surveys. Bhatnagar said the board drove the implementation of school climate surveys and that the focus must be on building a culture of trust and accountability. Day stressed policy enforcement, noting that 95 to 97 percent of students report feeling safe in climate surveys, and called for peer-led education programs where high schoolers talk with younger students about slurs and discrimination. The forum was organized by Terri Luken, co-president of the Northwest Westchester League of Women Voters. Bonnie Howe, a CHHS junior, delivered the welcome address on behalf of the student participants.